Holoholo Garden Isle

We spent King Kamehameha Day Weekend on the only island that was never conquered by the first founder and ruler of the Kingdom of Hawaii. However, it has been conquered by wild chickens that are the descendants of jungle fowl, fighting cocks and domestic chickens.

King Arthur has come to re-establish the independence of Kauai. He brought along his entourage of Jen, Lilyn, Liz, Marilyn, Quan and myself where his vassal, Scott picked us up.

We stopped to have breakfast in Lihue. Sushi breakfast. Just missing the hot tea.

Brief stop at Kauai’s “biggest little town” which also means crushed bay in Hawaiian.

Squeezing and swinging our way across the bridge that was built in 1911.

The load limit of 15 persons at one time was not exceeded. Safety first.

We bypassed the fee paying tourists and gawked in the grandeur that is the Grand Canyon of the Pacific.

Some of us left the nosebleed section to take a closer look at the canyon that measures roughly 10 miles long and more than 3,500′ deep.

Scrambling back up the slippery slope.

Out on a limb to gain a different perspective of the canyon.

Lunch at Koke’e Lodge where we just beat the lunch crowd. Some of us got the kamaaina discount without asking. Must have been the t-shirt.

Group photo at the lookout, left to right: Art, Marilyn, myself, Liz, Jen, Quan, Lilyn and Scott; where one can check out the largest valley on the island. We wanted to get a closer look.

We descended through the thick brush and tree canopy until the trail became more exposed along with the views that opened up.

Somebody was looking for alepa ridge? Acapella ridge? Say it enough times and one is bound to get it right.

The group coming down the trail bordered by low lying shrubs one one side and steep drops on the other side.

Looking down into the remote valley that was once home to Hawaiians and hippies.

The exposed crumbly red dirt stood in marked contrast to the greens and blues of the shrubbery and ocean.

Looking back at the stopping point for the rest of the group while Art, Jen, Lilyn and myself kept the forward momentum going on the trail.

Following the trail of goat poop as we continued our descent down the ridge.

The ridge narrowed as we lost elevation but gained splendid views of the valley, ridges and the deep blue ocean.

Jen climbing down the chossy ridge held together by the dry grass.

Somebody was wondering what they got themselves into and my ears were ringing. Loud. Very loud.

I think the ringing stopped as somebody soaked in the magnficient views all around us.

Looking down into the fluted peaks of the Kalalau cathedral.

Group photo at the end of the trail. Involuntarily. Sweeping views of Honopu and Kalalau Valleys along with the incessant helicopters circling below us.

Time to go back up and leave all this panoramic eye candy behind us.

Hey, where did everybody go? So much for the group photo.

Perfect timing as clouds started rolling in as we returned to the lookout.

On our way back down, we stopped at the seasonal waterfalls that are surrounded by red dirt which is a byproduct of the oxidized iron-rich basaltic rocks that are found in this area.

Hop, skip and a jump. Or something close to that.

Stopped at the original location in Waimea for some flavored ice dessert that has its origins in Japan.

When you follow the wrong Tacoma and still end up at the family beach that is also home to a salt pond where kanaka maoli families have their own plots to make Hawaiian salt for their own consumption or trading.

Quick stop at the 173′ triple falls. I don’t see de plane.

Dinner at Garden Island BBQ. Family style. Pass the rice. Loco moco to go.

Day 2
Birds of a feather flock together. I think the rice had something to do with it. The original plan today was to pile into a zodiac boat and explore sea caves and secluded beaches, high swells took care of that option. We woke up with the crowing chickens and screeching birds to go off-roading in search of the secret tunnel.

Overlooking the only river navigable by boats in the islands.

Never send a AWD to do a 4×4 job.

Russell, we have a problem. Time to turn around and do something else secret.

Where there’s a tree, there’s a photo opportunity.

The water flow was a bit thin at the 151′ waterfalls.

Why did the hikers cross the road? Because there was a crosswalk.

We elected to take the hiking trail rather than the kayaking tour.

Crossing the Wailua River.

Passing underneath one of several tree tunnels.

How high can the water get? Don’t want to be around to find out.

Scott said there used to be another concrete column on the other side of the river bank and they used to be connected to each other with a tethered cable for river crossings.

Looking down at the boardwalk that parallels a good chunk of the river.

Passing King’s Pool whose waterfall was barely trickling.

Approaching Uluwehi Falls aka Secret Falls aka Not So Secret Falls.

Group photo in front of the roughly 100′ waterfall. We had the place all to ourselves.

Water wings. Just got to work on the synchronicity.

Everybody getting out of the water. I think everybody had their water time.

Trying our best to feel rooted on the tree stumps.

Crossing the only rope found on the trail.

Passing a collection of crimson flowers.

Two way traffic on the North Fork river crossing.

Walking through the colorful beached kayaks.

Back on the road again. Back in the car again.

Eating lunch at the eatery where there is a little bit of everything on the menu. There was discussion of what to hike next. My suggestion of King Kong was repeatedly ignored. I would actually say blatantly.

We settled on hiking Nounou Mountain. The back side. A slipper friendly trail. The shortest and steepest of the three routes up the mountain.

The beginning of the trail was mostly shaded with pine trees planted back in the 1930s.

Switch backing up the trail as it became less shaded and intermittent rocky outcroppings on the way up.

Scott bareback bronc riding the bench on the “chest” of the giant.

After the rodeo was done, we all headed to the summit or “head” of the giant with a detour to the “nose.”

Some went through and others went over.

Exhaling.

Inhaling.

Jen showing off her rock climbing skills.

Standing tall.

Climbing up the most direct route to the top.

Group photo on the “nose.”

The rest of the group wrapped up their photo shoot and made their way to join us at the “head.”

Spin the hiker at the summit.

Going back down the West trail.

Looking back at the giant that has yet to be roused from his slumber.

We sampled some of the best shave ice that most of us has had in the islands.

Fallen angel. Can somebody pick her up please?

No weenies for the wahines.

Dinner was pizza with most of the toppings. Outside seating. Closing time.

Day 3
Woke up early on our last day on the island and drove North to take in a few more sights before flying home. Trying to separate King Kong from the ridge line. The mountains was also the background for the opening scene of Raiders of the Lost Ark.

We had breakfast at this cozy shop tucked away in a shopping center. Forget the pastries and get the stromboli. Veggie or sausage, it doesn’t matter. Thank me later.

Climbing our way down the short and steep hill.

Walking in low tide. No swimming needed.

A Hawaiian Green Sea Turtle (Honu) swimming in the shallow waters.

Mouth of the cave.

Looking out towards the ocean.

Shadows in the cave.

Keeping our distance from the endangered species. Look but don’t touch.

Low tide reflections.

Looking out the other cave entrance/exit.

Ocean view on the other side.

Art overlooking the tidepools with captured fish and missed photo opportunities.

We left without any attached barnacles. Our next stop to Queen’s Bath was derailed due to us being the 11th and 12th vehicles. No tandem parking.

Stepping foot on the pier that was built back in 1892.

Somebody’s buns hit the bottom. Not going back for seconds.

Group photo at the 340′ pier.

Who let the dogs out? Scott’s truck must have been a postal truck in its past life.

Somebody went to get cobwebs on his head in the cave that was formed from wave erosion when the sea level was higher and others picked avocadoes from the low hanging branches.

Climbing down into the Waikapalae Wet Cave that was also featured as the fountain of youth in the movie, Pirates of the Carribean: On Stranger Tides.

Looking up at the hanging vines and roots that drop down from the cliff to the cave.

The group making their way down to the water.

Scott said the water levels have dropped noticeably over the years and he urged us not to go into the water as he has had to pull a couple dead bodies from these waters over the years.

The cold water must have numbed their hearing. The sunlight bounces off the caves calcite rocks which gives the waters a blue tint.

Walking through the taro patches populated by wild chickens and Nene (Hawaiian Goose).

A hike that’s definitely worth repeating.

Want to pet my tako (octopus)?

A scene straight out of a B-horror movie, spider hikers fanning out on the exposed tree roots. Straight to DVD.

Last meal on the island was at Princeville Foodland where price means no object to the locals. We are not locals. Rich locals. We also had another helping of shave ice from Hee Fat before being dropped off at the airport by Russell and Scott.

We left Kauai full of fun memories and shave ice. Good times had by all. Special thanks to Scott for his generous hospitality and playing tour guide to our group over the weekend. Mahalo to Jacob for the rides to and from the airport.

Photos taken by Art Young, Elizabeth Barnaby, Jen Odence, Lilyn Avendano, Marilyn Bermudez, Quan Haberstroh, Scott Dea and yours truly. Not necessarily in order.

Note: I have been made aware that some hikers have been using my blog as a hiking guide and getting lost on the trails. Please note that this blog was made to document the hike for the crew(s) that did it. That is why some of my comments will seem to have no relevance or meaning to anybody outside of the crew(s) that hiked that trail. My blog was never meant as a hiking guide, so please do not treat it as such. If you find inspiration and entertainment from these hikes, that is more than enough. If you plan on replicating these hikes, do so in the knowledge that you should do your own research accordingly as trail conditions, access, legalities and so forth are constantly in flux. What was current today is most likely yesterdays news. Please be prepared to accept any risks and responsibilities on your own as you should know your own limitations, experience and abilities before you even set foot on a trail, as even the “simplest” or “easiest” of trails can present potential pitfalls for even the most “experienced” hikers.

Tagged as: airplane ridge, blue room, hanalei pier, hanapepe swinging bridge, kalalau lookout, kalepa ridge, opaekaa falls, puu hinahina lookout, red dirt falls, secret falls, sleeping giant, turtle cave, uluwehi falls, waikapalae wet cave, waimea canyon